Southern Railway No. 4501
Southern Railway No. 4501 is a 2-8-2 Mikado type steam locomotive and the first of the Ms class 2-8-2s. Southern Railway 2-8-2 No. 4501 was built in October 1911 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (serial number 37085) at the price of $23,182.00 (more than half of $1,000,000.00 today). The locomotive was built as the first engine for the railway's MS Class 'Mikado' locomotives. Once entering service, the 4501 was first assigned to a division in Bulls Gap, Tennessee, where it hauled coal, lumber, and freight. The engine when then based in Knoxville from 1917 - 1926, and then in Somerset, Kentucky from 1926 - 1935. The locomotive would eventually be assigned to numerous divisions on the system, finally on the St. Louis Division in Indiana. Once retired in July 1948, the 4501 was put up for sale, and was purchased by L.C. Bruce, the head mechanic of the Kentucky and Tennessee Railway for $8,225.75. On October 7, 1948, the locomotive was brought to Stearns under her own steam and was renumbered as the K&T's #12. The locomotive then continued service along with the K&T's other 2-8-2s, #10 (Baldwin, 1920) and #11 (ALCo, 1922) hauling coal down from the mines of Oz, Kentucky to the Southern Railway interchange at Stearns. In February 1964, the K&T purchased 3 ALCO S-4 diesels from the Denver & Rio Grande Western and the engine was retired, completing over 52 years of revenue service. The fate of the locomotive seemed dim until a railfan named Paul H. Merriman purchased the 2-8-2 for $5,000 of his own money with intentions to restore it and run it on excursion trains on private tracks (non-Southern). His goal became a reality when the locomotive's restoration was completed on June 6, 1964, and following it's completion it made an historic test-run from the K&T Railway's shops in Stearns, Kentucky, to Chattanooga, Tennessee. What followed was the very first (and at the time only) public excursion the 4501 pulled. As thousands of people tuned out to see the 4501, Southern Railway management (Brosnan & Claytor) took notice of the wonderful public relations. After 4501's flue time ran out, things again seemed dim. Lucy Boiler or Chattanooga donated space and the Southern helped get things along, welcoming 4501 onto their rails once again, marking the beginning of the Southern Railway Steam Program. In 1966, the 4501 was painted up in the Sylvan Green and Gold livery of the Southern and became the first locomotive to haul excursion trains for the steam program. In 1968 her original tender was replaced by a former Central of Georgia tender from MoW service. 4501 operated into the late 1970's when her age started to catch up, and more and more problems (such as a collapsed dry pipe, caught up with her). In 1973 the 4501 hauled the Circus World Museum Train throughout Wisconsin. She was finally shopped in the early 1980's, returning in 1984 with an all welded tender body (which she carries to this day), a lighter shade of green (Irondale shop painting it), and graphite grey smokebox. After spending some time on the sidelines, as N&W 611 and 1218 represented the N&W portion of the now Norfolk Southern excursions. Eventually 4501 returned to service in the late 1980s and early 1990's, working a triple header for the Steam Programme 25th anniversary trip piloting 611 and 1218. 4501 continued in service, after the end of NS steam on TVRM trips until October 1996, when she was repainted black (with shed markings). 4501 continued out service on the trips to Summerville, and a final trip on the Missionary Ridge Local in November 1998, before being put away. The Southern 2-8-2 4501 hauled excursions for the historic program for the majority of the time it operated. In 1994, the locomotive went back to the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum for museum duties, and ran until September 20, 1998, when it was sidelined for major repairs and an overhaul. In 2011, the 2-8-2 'Mikado' had it's boiler evaluated for possible repair, and the same year it's restoration began. Some of the major milestones of the restoration are below: In 2008, #4501 was stripped for a boiler inspection, and passed for restoration. In January 2014, #4501 passed it's FRA Hydro Test, and the locomotive's wheels were installed again. The same month in 2014, #4501 committed a static steam test, and passed all FRA certification. In September 2014, the #4501 returned to service and made it's first public run on the Missionary Ridge Local train at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum's 2014 'Railfest' on September 6 and 7. In 2015, Norfolk Southern ran excursions with the Southern 2-8-2 4501 for it's 21st Century Steam Program, which has been 'operating' since 2010 and already has a large stable of locomotives that have/will operate excursions. Pop Culture *Southern Railway No. 4501 made an appearance in the 1999 film "October Sky" dressed as Norfolk & Western No. 4501 with O. Winston Link as the engineer in the film. One interesting fact was that the Norfolk & Western never owned any 2-8-2s, they preferred 4-8-0 Twelve Wheelers (called Mollies or Mastodons by the N&W) because of their adhesive weight. *4501 also starred in the 1971 movie "Fools Parade" as Baltimore & Ohio #4501. *4501 cameoed in the opening of the 1978 film "Summer of my German Soldier" bringing some German POWs to a POW camp in Louisiana. See also *Gallery Category:2-8-2 Steam Locomotives Category:Southern Railway Locomotives Category:Tender Engines Category:Baldwin locomotives Category:Steam Locomotives Category:American Locomotives Category:2-8-2 Locomotives Category:Eight Coupled Locomotives Category:Movie Star Locomotives Category:Built in 1911 Category:Steam Program Locomotives Category:Excursion Locomotives